Just dont fear any of this crap. Your on a ride watching a humanoid civilization enter a stage 1 civilization (as Dr Kaku would put it). Dont rise up
against our authorities or even speak bad about them, thats just stupid. They worked the hardest to get control of this world and probably saved us
from destroying ourselves many times its just coming to the point now where we are entering a new era and in a world where one person can murder many
people we need a ruling body with strict codes. I use to be scared by all the conspiracies and stuff but now after Im chilled out and gotten wiser I
realize it is all evolution of our species, we were meant to have secret societies that work for greater control. It evolution of our ruling body. I
want to imagine us humans going galactic and ponder on the bueaty of our universe, not live in fear of my own parents/government.

Oh, wow! You just plucked these exact same thoughts right out of my head!

I've been wrestling with this idea myself. Since joining ATS, I do feel more informed about many things. But what do I do with that information?
How do I determine what I should trust and what I shouldn't?

The terrorism angle really hits home for me. It may sound really surprising, but I never had an inkling that our own government might have some
explaining to do with relation to 9-11. Never heard of a black flag op, anything like this. Then I come to this sight and get a real
education....now my head is spinning. Is the US really under threat of terrorism? If so, are the stringent security measures and freedoms lost
(Patriot Act) a legitimiate, reasonable, and truthful response to that threat? Or are the powers that be using it for another agenda?

I guess this is the basis for that tried but true cliche...ignorance is bliss.

It's also the reason religion is so attractive, in my opinion. Saying things are "God's Will", etc., allows us to feel safe and protected despite
the very real chaos spinning out of control around us.

As for solutions? Got none, but can't wait to hear what others suggest.

Since I have joined (which wasn't all that long ago) I have definitely learned a lot, but now there is a constant battle in myself between what to
believe on ATS, what to believe from any media outlet, and whether or not I should just nix it all, and believe in my own experience.

It has even gotten to the point where on a recent History channel show, they mentioned that 13,000 years ago, humans weren't around, and my mind shot
to a few threads on here that show that humans quite possibly HAVE been around that long!

So then questions turns to, well why are we being taught this from an early age? And suddenly things are spiraling out of control.

Well our reality right now is one where we could be headed for disaster.

The way I cut out fear-mongerers is that they usually never attempt to provide any solution or message of hope for the doomed situation. People who
speak the "truth" are the ones who say that we can come out of it alive, and can build upon what we go through. Fear mongerers say that their is no
hope, we are doomed: Rise up, grab your shottie, and start a revolution.

If you want truth: Look up Club of Budapest and Ervin Lazlo.
If you want fear mongerer: Look up Alex Jones.

So fellow ATS members, I pose this question to you all, do you have any helpful techniques to cut the fear mongering out, and see the picture as a
whole? Or is this just plain impossible?

To be honest, I'd say put some distance between you and the ATS community. Of all the websites I visit daily, I have to say that ATS is the most
unique if for no other reason than the vortex of fear, uncertainty, and rage which - if too much time is spent, can begin to weight on your shoulders
and corrode your soul with an almost tactile atmosphere of oppression. I find I have to take breaks on occasion to "detox" the negativity.

With the news media, I can understand their motives and identify their sales pitches for what they are. Their sensationalism is mitigated by a grain
of salt, and more often than not - I just simply won't watch TV due to the baseness of producing for the lowest common denominator demographic. I'd
rather spend the time online surfing for educational material - answering all those odd-ball questions which creep into my head that many people just
shrug off.

I do enjoy the exposure to "left-field" ideas I get here, and the unintended avenues of discovery I occasionally stumble upon when investigating
some claim - either to establish the credibility of, or fact checking my responses to. Yet it'd depressing to see so many people seemingly lost in
the dreamland, frightened, confused, and angry - pursuing magics and myths in the desperate hope of something remarkable.

ATS is a sojourn into the heart of the demon haunted world that Carl Sagan wrote about.

Originally posted by smyleegrl
How do I determine what I should trust and what I shouldn't?

You need to develop a working methodology for testing and falsifying claims presented to you. Develop standards of credibility and adhere to them.
Become familiar with a wide variety of topics from which to cross-reference claims.

A good rule of thumb which has served me well; abandon your search for the "Truth". If you set out searching for only the truth, then no matter
where you look you will find it. I don't mean to suggest that the truth is hidden in plain sight, but that cognitive biases must be accounted
for and marginalized to the best of your ability to weed out false positives and phantom correlations.

One rule of thumb which has worked well for me; "Seek not the truth, Seek instead concordance and the truth will follow of it's own accord."

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